If you are going to hire someone’s family or friends, you need to make sure that the expectations and deliverables are clearly understood. These should not be shared on a cocktail napkin or a post-it note. You need to treat it like an official transaction.

If you hire a family member or a friend, are you willing to fire that person if things go poorly?

You also need to be very careful of donors or board members who recommend their family or friends. If that person isn’t up to the task and the results are poor, then it can be very uncomfortable explaining this to one of your stakeholders.

I understand handshake agreements but it’s better to get everything in writing. Make sure your project has a clear timeline. What will happen if a deadline is missed? This street needs to go both ways because it’s not always the company that’s dragging its feet. Nonprofits can be notoriously bad at allowing endless discussions to delay decisions.

Make sure there is a clear understanding about how many revisions can be made to the project. Does one side consider a revision to be fixing a typo while the other believes it means starting from scratch?

Will your assignment, like a a website, be based on a template? There’s nothing wrong with using something that’s been successful in the past. The downside is that when you use a template, it looks like everyone else’s website. Keep in mind that original work costs more.

In all of these scenarios, don’t worry about being demanding. You represent your stakeholders and they trust that you’ll make a smart investment. Take that responsibility seriously.

Some marketing firms will offers special rates for nonprofits. Saving a few dollars can be very enticing. In many cases, firms do this out of the goodness of their hearts. Bless them.

Then there are the companies that use nonprofit business as a way to fill in the gaps when they’re not otherwise making money from full fee clients. You’re seen as a cheap date and not as a relationship.

The danger is that you are not their top priority. If a full fee job comes along, work on your project will likely be put on hold. You won’t be told this. You’ll just wonder why the work hasn’t been done and why your emails aren’t being returned in a timely fashion.

If you complain, then you’re told, “Hey, you’re getting the work done for less.” This is not an acceptable response.

If you agree to a discount, you need to make sure that your project will be a priority. Otherwise the discount will be used as an excuse for not treating your work with the importance that it deserves.